Juxtaglomerular (JG) cells are located in renal afferent arterioles close to the glomerulus. Here they are able to sense fluctuations in systolic pressure, ion composition in tubular fluid detected by the adjacent macula densa cells, sympathetic influences and hormonal influences, and respond by secreting renin. During development, renin expression in the primitive vessels of the [...]
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The complete sequencing of the human genome in 2001 showed that fewer than 3000 genes encode more than a million proteins. One gene can encode not only a single protein but several proteins, depending on the number of transcriptional (mRNA splicing) and post-translational (glycosylation) modifications. Currently the Swiss-Prot protein database contains 276 256 annotated proteins [...]
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The three isoforms of nitric oxide synthase (NOS), neuronal NOS (nNOS, NOS 1), inducible NOS (iNOS, NOS 2) and endothelial (eNOS, NOS 3), convert l-arginine to nitric oxide (NO) and l-citrulline. NO is a vasoactive compound that induces vasodilation of arterial and venous blood vessels. In endothelial cells, l-arginine is transported via the cell membrane [...]
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